US 12,501,852 B2Granted

Belt-type cutting system for cutting crops in a field

AssigneeCNH Industrial America LLC

InventorsBart M.A. Missotten, Jasper Vanlerberghe, Sam Reubens, Lucas Deruyter, Frederik Tallir, Dré W.J. Jongmans, Sahand Hajshekoleslami, Pieter Van Overschelde

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Abstract

The cutting system includes knives attached to a continuously moving belt-type carrier. The carrier motion moves the knives past stationary counterknife fingers. Each knife is pivotably connected to the platform portion of a support bracket having also a wall portion that is fixed to the belt-type carrier. The knife is furthermore coupled to the bracket by a reversible force coupling that maintains the knife in a forwardly oriented operational position when the knife is subjected to lateral forces which exert a torque on the knife that remains below a predefined limit, encountered when the knife is cutting stalks or meeting small obstructions. When the knife is subjected to lateral forces resulting in a torque above the predefined limit, the force coupling is configured to be disengaged in a reversible manner, enabling the knife to pivot about a rotation axis towards a non-operational position.

Claims14

Dependent claims

A cutting system configured to be driven through a field in a forward direction in order to cut plant stalks at a given distance from the ground, the cutting system comprising:

(i) a belt-type carrier configured to be guided by a set of pulleys, so as to move in a direction transversal to the stalks, wherein a plurality of knives are attached to a lateral surface of the carrier,
(ii) a cutterbar provided with a plurality of counterknives configured to remain stationary relative to the knives as the knives move past the counterknives, to thereby cut the stalks,
each knife being attached to the carrier through a support bracket, the support bracket comprising a wall portion that is fixed to the carrier and a platform portion extending outward from the carrier,
each knife being pivotably coupled to the platform portion of the bracket,
each knife being pivotable about a rotation axis, which is substantially perpendicular to the platform portion, between an operational position in which the knife is oriented in a forward direction and a non-operational position in which the knife is pivoted away from the forward direction,
the knife being coupled to the bracket by a reversible force coupling that (i) maintains the knife in the operational position when the knife is cutting plant stalks, and (ii) requires a predefined torque in order to disengage the coupling and thereby allow the knife to pivot about the rotation axis towards the non-operational position, and
(iii) at least one reset element that is configured to interact with the reversible force couplings of the knives to thereby automatically reset the knives from the non-operational position back to the operational position.

4 more elements

A cutting system configured to be driven through a field in a forward direction in order to cut plant stalks at a given distance from the ground, the cutting system comprising:

a belt-type carrier configured to be guided by a set of pulleys, so as to move in a direction transversal to the stalks, wherein a plurality of knives are attached to a lateral surface of the carrier, and
a cutterbar provided with a plurality of counterknives configured to remain stationary relative to the knives as the knives move past the counterknives, to thereby cut the stalks,
each knife being attached to the carrier through a support bracket, the support bracket comprising a wall portion that is fixed to the carrier and a platform portion extending outward from the carrier,
each knife being pivotably coupled to the platform portion of the bracket,
each knife being pivotable about a rotation axis, which is substantially perpendicular to the platform portion, between an operational position in which the knife is oriented in a forward direction and a non-operational position in which the knife is pivoted away from the forward direction,
the knife being coupled to the bracket by a reversible force coupling that (i) maintains the knife in the operational position when the knife is cutting plant stalks, and (ii) requires a predefined torque in order to disengage the coupling and thereby allow the knife to pivot about the rotation axis towards the non-operational position,
wherein the force coupling comprises an overcenter mechanism.

4 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.